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Monday, July 23, 2012

Late night street robberies reach Alberta Street

Two victims, one stabbed, by a trio with a knife demanding valuables early this morning. The stabbed guy was riding a bicycle.

Fremont, Sandy, and now groovy Alberta. As the Temptations once sang, "it ain't even safe no more, to walk the streets at night." They were singing about Detroit in 1968, but that's Portland now. How sad.

Comments (9)

Oh, geez. Now they've done it. Robberies elsewhere in Portland just encourage more tweeting. The moment word starts getting out that hipsters might be mugged and stabbed, though, and Jehovah himself couldn't protect the perps from Sam Adams's wrath. That might affect his legacy.

Just like in 1968 we have a society at odds with itself and those who feel disaffected are taking it to the streets. Gentrified, displaced, no place to fit into the society at large - what to do with all that anger and resentment? Violence is not right, but it is not a mystery. We need more jobs. Places people can go to and be productive and feel like their time matters, and earn a paycheck. Work and social connections are basic needs of a mentally healthy life, just as idleness and dependence are not. Whatever government can do to get out of the way of businesses wanting to hire new workers should be done. Everyone needs hope. And a purpose.

It's not fair to say they've done nothing. It's true that they've cut summer recreation programs by 60% or something like that, but they have provided a "gentrification therapeutic listening" (or some such) program of meetings in which people are encouraged to wail and moan about gentrification and it is all officially listened to by a paid facilitator. I think there might have been a charrette or two, also.

As one astute commenter said recently on oregonlive, certain unemployed persons would quit by noon, or have to be fired by noon, on the first day of any job they were allowed to start. I would say this truism applies to anyone who stabs bicyclists for their backpacks.

I recently talked to a lady in her sixties, who carries a concealed weapon. She told me that the other night two separate people asked her for money as she walked between her parked car and the door of the grocery store. She feels very nervous about the future.

It did make me ponder the concealed weapon question. I'd be too afraid to shoot myself in the thigh trying to draw it under duress. I know! The gun companies could develop special clothing, which, on command, would suddenly shows bright letters up in the air over the wearer:
"I carry". Bio-camouflage in reverse, just like all those those exotic poisonous squid or frogs-how come they get to have all the fun?

Like a snake's rattle, it would decidedly settle down the punk stabber population.

You people have no memory of what Alberta st was like in the late 80's or the first half of the 90's. The fact that such a minor crime is even reported says how much the neighborhood has changed. I'm guessing that some fools got out of stir and are back living with some relatives. It is depressing that all of the burgeoning of places like Mississippi seems to go right from slum to yuppieville without ever pausing in the land of safe and affordable. I firmly believe that what makes gentrification so easy is that there are so many immigrants that have no memory of the neighborhoods. Maybe it is just as well.